This morning I read in 1 Kings 19:3 that fear of man struck even struck one of God's most famous prophets, a man who rained fire on God's enemies, who built an altar in the face of many enemies to the Lord and trusted that God would ignite it on fire even after being dowsed with buckets full of water 3 times.  On this last note, Jezebel, Queen of Israel, proclaimed her intent to kill Elijah, to which, like any of us normal people, he responded by running away!  Now I get that reaction and think it a prudent course when being hunted by someone, however, this is Elijah; could he have not prayed to God, and God would have taken care of this situation? 

Just a few verses late, Elijah asks God for death; his fear of man put him in the mind set that death would be better than life at the point.  His despair was great!  But what does God do?  He sends an Angel to feed Elijah.  What mercy from our great God that he would intervene in our weaknesses!!!

God is merciful even in times when we do not see it so.  I pray for you today that you would put your faith in God who can lift, comfort, and help you in your time of need.  Jesus Christ has said that he will never leave us nor forsake us; that he has sent a helper to us, the Holy Spirit, to proclaim him; that he can be found in his word, the Bible.  Seek him early today!

Pursue Obedience to God

God calls us to pursue obedience to him.  I was struck this morning by 1 Peter 4:1.  I have this verse in my memory verses to remind myself to make war on Sin, but I wanted to know the whole context, so I dropped back to 1 Peter 3.  We see here Peter, encouraging us and making arguments for why we should live righteously, that is without sin.  You can see in verse 18 that one purpose of Christ's death on the cross is to make us alive in the spirit.  Contrast that with the first part of the verse, separating just (him, the sinless one) with the unjust (us, sinners) and we can understand that to be alive in the spirit is a reference to living lives that are free from sin.  

Not that we can be sinless!  Beautifully, Christ the sinless one bore our unjustness on the Cross and died in our stead to bring us to God!

Again, in verse 20-21, Peter gives us a terrible picture in which God the holy and just destroys all life on Earth in order to save a few righteous and begin again.  I say he is just and allowed to do as he wants!, but Peter contrasts this picture with what has happened in believers lives, not that we are saved to continue in sin, but that God has destroyed that which had it's control over us in the same way he destroyed evil men in Noah's time.  

That brings us to 1 Peter 4:1-2 in which our lives are compared to the Man Jesus Christ, in which he suffered in flesh to the end that he might not live in sin but that he would live for the will of God.  Be encouraged Christian when suffering comes because "he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God."!

Faith (How do we know what it is?)

Knowing that our lives are short in comparison to eternity (Psa 39:5), I acknowledge that I can't know anything apart from the Lord. I'm not even sure what faith is, but I know that I can find out about it in the word of God!

Below are a few verses that I have found the Greek word, pistis, the word for faith, in the new testament (concordances are great!):

God requires faith:
Matt 23:23; Mark 11:22; Luke 7:50, 8:25, 18:8; Acts 20:21; Rom 1:17, 11:20, 14:22-23

God gives faith:
Luke 17:5, 22:32; Acts 14:27, 15:9; Rom 12:3-6; 1 Cor 12:9

These are very encouraging to me to know that all I have to do to find faith is to pray and look to what God has already given to establish faith. Faith comes by hearing the words of Christ (Rom 10:17)!

Salvation is from the Jews!

Jesus said, "You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews" (John 4:22).

"For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham's descendants, but: " THROUGH ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED." That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants. (Romans 6:6-9)"

Is this talking about spy's inside of Israel. No! It shows that just because some were born to Israel does not give them a right to enter the kingdom of heaven.

"If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too. But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you. You will say then, "Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in." Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear; for if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you, either. Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God's kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree?" (Romans 11:16-24).

Is this talking about olive trees? No! It's talking about the descendants of Israel, of the flesh, and those who have been grafted are... those who believe in Christ. These Christians are brought into the olive tree, that is the true Israel, including those who had gone before that believed God and were credited with Righteousness (Romans 4:3).So what does this mean for me as a Christian? 1 Timothy 3:16-17 says that this scripture should be able to train me in righteousness and equip me for good works. Let's go back to Romans.

"²⁵For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery--so that you will not be wise in your own estimation--that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in;and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, "THE DELIVERER WILL COME FROM ZION, HE WILL REMOVE UNGODLINESS FROM JACOB." ²⁷"THIS IS MY COVENANT WITH THEM, WHEN I TAKE AWAY THEIR SINS."²⁸From the standpoint of the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but from the standpoint of God's choice they are beloved for the sake of the fathers;for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience. ³¹so these also now have been disobedient, that because of the mercy shown to you they also may now be shown mercy. ³²For God has shut up all in disobedience so that He may show mercy to all. ³³Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! ³⁴For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? ³⁵Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? ³⁶For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things To Him be the glory forever. Amen" (Romans 11:25-36).

Following the example and instruction from Paul in this passage, I think that we should keep our focus on 2 things:

1 God' mercy/Our Thankfulness
2 God's Wisdom

And do as Paul called the Philippians to do: "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:4-7).

For you who are reading this, you should be a Berean: "Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so" (Acts 17:10-11).

The Church

God has really been teaching me about his church, it’s purpose and it’s people, through his word (2 timothy 3:16), unbeknown to me of course. I am quite dense when it comes to understanding the word, but 1 John 2:27 tells me that I do not require teaching, but God himself will teach me (us) all things.

So anyways, the story is that I became interested in (well if you read my last post you’ll see that I mentioned this) 1 Corinthians 1:17-19, seeing that I should make my focus the gospel, and not any other theology or aspect of God. I like listening to M Driscoll when I get the chance (even though I disagree with him on some readings of the word – he confesses Christ’s death and resurrection 1 john 4:1-2) to see what he thinks on different matters, so I found a sermon of his on 1 Corinthians. I have since been listening to his series on the church in Corinth, and at the same time it has been brought to my attention from others (in the body of Christ) readings from the word on what and who the church is.

I see that the church is to be unified in thought, of the same mind (1 Cor 1:10). We are here to encourage each other closer to Christ (1 The 5:11). I had never considered before that the people who are in Christ and understand his justification, my brothers and sisters, should be of one mind. I have never thought of sharing the word of Christ was anything other than trying to bring someone to the Lord. But it’s not! It’s that and more.

The word of Christ is a reasoned explanation of God’s connection to us!

• It’s an encouragement to those who believe on Christ.
• It separates those who do not believe on Christ from those who do.
• It tells of people who have walked this earth before.
• It tells of what is to come.
• It is exclusive and inclusive.
• The word of the bible is for all people’s salvation!

To follow God’s word is to please God. It gives us the opportunity to not shrink away in shame at Christ 2^nd coming (1 John 1:28). It gives us peace in time of trouble and in times of joy. It keeps us on our feet and lifts us up with Christ (both to heaven and to sacrifice)!

We are not to give up on each other (Hebrews 10:25), but we are to be of one mind. There can be disagreement in the church, but it must be resolved by the word of Christ. There is no private interpretation of the word (2 peter 1:20).

Thank God that he sent his only son that we might be saved from our sins (Eph 2:8). Thank God that he has given us a new spirit (romans 8:13) that we might be changed from our sinful ways! I say thank God that he gives me a heart for the poor, the widowed, the hurt, the tired, those without hope, those who are lonely, those who are hungry, those who need a ride, those who are frustrated with life, people without peace, people craving more from life, and anyone with whom I may come in contact!

Praise be to God!

On 1 John 1:9

Forgiveness and Confession

We should always confess our sins to him and each other, but his forgiveness is there even before we confess our sins:

“II. The apostle then instructs the believer in the way to the continued pardon of his sin. Here we have, 1. His duty in order thereto: If we confess our sins, v. 9. Penitent confession and acknowledgment of sin are the believer’s business, and the means of his deliverance from his guilt”

(not from God’s condemnation because there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ – Romans 8:1. We are not condemn by God if we believe on Christ. Therefore there is no need for asking forgiveness). – my insert

“And, 2. His encouragement thereto, and assurance of the happy issue. This is the veracity, righteousness, and clemency of God, to whom he makes such confession: He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness, v. 9. God is faithful to his covenant and word, wherein he has promised forgiveness to penitent believing confessors. He is just to himself and his glory who has provided such a sacrifice, by which his righteousness is declared in the justification of sinners. He is just to his Son who has not only sent him for such service, but promised to him that those who come through him shall be forgiven on his account. By his knowledge (by the believing apprehension of him) shall my righteous servant justify many, Isa. 53:11. He is clement and gracious also, and so will forgive, to the contrite confessor, all his sins, cleanse him from the guilt of all unrighteousness, and in due time deliver him from the power and practice of it.”
~blueletterbible.org / Matthew Henry Commentary on 1 John 1

Here is the Greek for “we confess” @ 1 John 1:9:

Homologeō
1) to say the same thing as another, i.e. to agree with, assent
2) to concede
a) not to refuse, to promise
b) not to deny
1) to confess
2) declare
3) to confess, i.e. to admit or declare one's self guilty of what one is accused of
3) to profess
a) to declare openly, speak out freely
b) to profess one's self the worshipper of one
4) to praise, celebrate

Here is the Greek for “forgive” @ Matt 6:12:

Aphiēmi
1) to send away
a) to bid going away or depart
1) of a husband divorcing his wife
b) to send forth, yield up, to expire
c) to let go, let alone, let be
1) to disregard
2) to leave, not to discuss now, (a topic)
a) of teachers, writers and speakers
3) to omit, neglect
d) to let go, give up a debt, forgive, to remit
e) to give up, keep no longer
2) to permit, allow, not to hinder, to give up a thing to a person
3) to leave, go way from one
a) in order to go to another place
b) to depart from any one
c) to depart from one and leave him to himself so that all mutual claims are abandoned
d) to desert wrongfully
e) to go away leaving something behind
f) to leave one by not taking him as a companion
g) to leave on dying, leave behind one
h) to leave so that what is left may remain, leave remaining
i) abandon, leave destitute

It’s the peace of Christ that is seen by knowing that if we believe “on” Christ our sins are forgiven already & always!

Galatians 6:2 admonishes us to bear each other’s burdens. I believe that through confession to each other we are able to do that. There is no need to ask forgiveness because we have already been justified by Christ before, so therefore, know that God has forgiven you and that you are free from sin and sinning to live as free people!

Also, note that to love Christ, believing “on” him and abiding in him, we must keep and abide in his word (John 14:23). This is one way to know that we are believing on Christ and not just claiming a belief in Christ, a belief that doesn’t produce fruit.

Who is Jesus

The deity of Christ has always been under attack by him who lies continually and tries to deceive mankind before God. Here are a few verses to encourage you to know Jesus as God: 

"He said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?' Simon Peter answered, 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'" 
Matthew 16:15-16

Here Jesus makes clear that he is not John the Baptist, a great preacher, or Elijah come back from heaven after being taken up. He makes a clear separation between him as a prophet and him as something totally different, a son of the Living God, which according to Matthew 26:63 would have been known to the people of the time as the Christ that was coming to save man. 

"Jesus said to them, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.'" 
John 8:58 

Jesus declare his existence since times that have long since passed. He says here that he existed before Abraham. This is a clear reference to God's own declaration in Exodus 3:14 and shows Jesus' own belief in himself to be God, born in the flesh. 

 "But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, 'I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.' Jesus said to him, 'You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.' Then the high priest tore his robes and said, 'He has blasphemed! What further need do we have of witnesses? Behold, you have now heard the blasphemy;'" 
Matthew 26:63-65 

 This again shows that Jesus believed himself to be God and that others around him understood him to be saying that very thing that he was God.  Jesus rose from death and ascended on high.  He foretold this, and we can believe him because has not been shown to be a liar.  Others have claimed to be God and still others have claimed various things related to death, but Jesus stands apart from all these claims.  Trust that Jesus is God, and he keeps his word.  He will raise those who believe on him on the last day, and those who do not will be delivered into the lake of fire. 

1 Corinthians 4:20

"For the kingdom of God does not consist in words but in power." 1 Corinthians 4:20

How often do we come to the word of God and see it just as words on a page?  How often can you see in your own life that reading of the word does not change/move you in some way?  What is the power in God's word?

"For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe." 1Thessalonians 2:13

It performs work in those who believe.  So there is power in God's word to work in us, who believe.

"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." Hebrews 4:12 

So the word of God has power to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Christ says that those who hear his word and acts on it is like a wise man who builds his house upon a rock versus a fool who builds his house upon the sand (Matthew 7:24).  Christ says that we can miss what the word is truly about: him (John 5:39).  Summing up: God's word has power.  We can miss this power and the work it does on our lives.  

"But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him." James 1:5 

Praise the Lord for this promise.  Let's make this our prayer that in whatever we read, the Lord would give us wisdom that we might be moved to action from a sincere faith!

1 Corinthians 4:15-16

1 Corinthians 4:15-16
"For if you were to have countless tutors in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. Therefore I exhort you, be imitators of me."

Christ redefined how we think about family and relationships when he made it clear that those who do the will of the father are his sister, brother, mother (Matthew 12:47-50).  Those, like Paul, who take time to disciple and make disciples become the father's of those they disciple.  The disciple becomes the imitator of the father, however we must be careful in how we approach this thought.  We are not called to worship man or hold him any higher than our Lord.  Consider Ezekiel.

Ezekiel 18:4-9
"Behold, all souls are Mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine. The soul who sins will die. But if a man is righteous and practices justice and righteousness, and does not eat at the mountain shrines or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, or defile his neighbor's wife or approach a woman during her menstrual period-- if a man does not oppress anyone, but restores to the debtor his pledge, does not commit robbery, but gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with clothing, if he does not lend money on interest or take increase, if he keeps his hand from iniquity and executes true justice between man and man, if he walks in My statutes and My ordinances so as to deal faithfully--he is righteous and will surely live," declares the Lord GOD."

Our faith must be sincere before God and not before those that may disciple (1Timothy 1:5; 2Timothy 1:5; Hebrews 10:22).  God is the keeper of our soul's and the judge (Hebrews 9:27; 2 Peter 3:7).

1 Corinthians 4:6

1 Corinthians 4:6

"Now these things, brethren, I have figuratively applied to myself and Apollos for your sakes, so that in us you may learn not to exceed what is written, so that no one of you will become arrogant in behalf of one against the other."

What things?

1Corinthians 1:12

"Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, 'I am of Paul,' and 'I of Apollos,' and 'I of Cephas,' and 'I of Christ.'"

Paul & Apollos: figuratively any teacher other than Christ.


1Corinthians 3:4-6
"For when one says, 'I am of Paul,' and another, 'I am of Apollos,' are you not mere men? What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth."

Paul & Apollos: figuratively any teacher other than Christ. 

1Corinthians 3:22
"whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things belong to you,"



Paul & Apollos: figuratively any teacher other than Christ. 

What is Paul's purpose in applying these things to him and Apollos? So that they may not exceed what is written (that greek word there for 'written' - grapho; it appears 209 times  in the new testament and 208 of those times, it is translated as a form of write; so I think Paul meant to say 'written').  What did Paul just finish speaking on? He tells us that God's wisdom is far better than man's wisdom; there's no comparison! 1Corinthians 1:25, 2:11, 3:19.  Consider yourself blessed to have the scripture, so that we might not have to exceed what is written: and specifically the old testament which is what they had to work from as first century believers!  

This verse also reminds me of this scripture: ""It shall be with him and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, by carefully observing all the words of this law and these statutes, that his heart may not be lifted up above his countrymen and that he may not turn aside from the commandment, to the right or the left, so that he and his sons may continue long in his kingdom in the midst of Israel." Deuteronomy 17:19-20

Both verses bring us to what is written so that pride will not overcome us.  Let us look to the scriptures as the thing on which we stand, not missing the fact that it is these that tell us of Christ!

1 Corinthians 3:6&8

1 Corinthians 3:5-9

"What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building."

We are called to labor as Christians, planting seeds in people's hearts from the scripture just as Christ describes in Matthew 13:19-23.  Have you ever seen a seed planted in the ground?  Does it make a difference if someone twirls around, jumps up and down and drops the seed behind their back to plant it or if someone just simply puts it in the ground?  The manner in which a seed is planted matters nothing, but rather God who causes it to grow.  

1 Corinthians 3:1-4

1 Corinthians 3:1-4

"And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men? For when one says, "I am of Paul," and another, "I am of Apollos," are you not mere men?"

What is the place of a denomination but to say "I follow these sets of principles."?  Are you not following mere men?  

"As for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in Him." 1 John 2:27

""But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come." John 16:13

"In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation --having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,"  Ephesians 1:13

1 Corinthians 2:2,6,10-11

1 Corinthians 2:2

"For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified." 

How are we to make disciples?  Do you teach all the mysteries of God and wisdom from the Lord to a new believer?  Do you make known to an unbeliever the knowledge of how the body of Christ works in the church?  By no means!  Preach Christ to those who have not the Lord and who are new to the Lord.  "If the foundations are destroyed, What can the righteous do?" Psalm 11:3

Consider the soil: "Those on the rocky soil are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no firm root; they believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away."  Luke 8:13

Christians should be firmly rooted in the Gospel.  They should be able to exhort, teach, encourage, etc. others in the Gospel.  They should be able to pull from their hearts (Psalm 119:11) verses from the scriptures that describe the Gospel.  I don't picture someone firmly rooted in math and not having a full memorization of the times tables or how to do long division.  I don't think someone is firmly rooted in English literature that doesn't have some of Chaucer committed to memory.  Why is it any different when we come to the Gospel?

1 Corinthians 2:6

"Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away;"

There is a place for wisdom among the mature in Christ.  However someone is not mature in the Lord (no matter how long they've been born again) if they do not have the knowledge and ability to speak and share the Gospel (Hebrews 5:11-14).

1 Corinthians 2:10-11

"For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God." 

Here's a fact that should encourage you in your understanding and ability to memorize and share the Gospel: You HAVE the spirit of God living inside of you if you believe that Christ, by grace, has saved you from the wrath of God, and pulled you from a life of corruption, to live not for yourself but for him (1 Corinthians 3:16, Ephesians 1:13, Revelation 20:15, 2 Corinthians 5:15)!  He will equip you for every good work (Hebrews 13:21).

1 Corinthians 1:17-18,25,30

1 Corinthians 1:17-18

"For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void. For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."

Paul's main point in being among the Corinthians was not to do some religious act (which Christ's actually commands in Matthew 28:19), but it was to preach the gospel! Can you preach the Gospel? It should be of the utmost importance in a new believers life: learning & speaking the Gospel of Christ.

1 Corinthians 1:25
"Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men."

Just a reminder that if you do look like a fool among men for preaching the Gospel, it is not you that they consider a fool but rather God himself.

1 Corinthians 1:30
"But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption,"

God has called you to his wisdom that which has been known since the beginning of time (John 1:1) and never shall fade (1 Peter 1:25).  Consider Romans 12:2.  Why would we be called to renew our minds if we already understood?

1 Corinthians 1:10&13

1 Corinthians 1:10

"I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you..."

The Division in which he speaks:

1 Corinthians 1:13

"Has Christ been divided?"

Believers at Corinth claimed to be of a certain 'sect' under Christ: 'of Paul', 'of Apollos', 'of Cephas'.  Christ has not been divided.  Let us as believers at least agree that we are not of a certain sect under Christ, but that we are under Christ and Christ alone.

Other verses I think of:

1 Corinthians 11:3

"But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ."

Romans 14:4

"Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand."

Matthew 15:3

"And He answered and said to them, "Why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?"

God, a God of Recompense!

Romans 6:23
"For the wages of sin is Death..."

Jeremiah 51:56
"For the LORD is a God of recompense, He will fully repay."

Romans 6:23
"...but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus!"

Recompense --hebrew-> gĕmuwlah --aka-> reward, deed

Recompense: (as defined by dictionary.com) to repay; remunerate; reward, as for service, aid, etc.

Within the context of Jeremiah 51:56, understand that God is repaying/rewarding the Chaldeans and Babylonians with death and destruction.

Praise the Lord that Christ has bore our sin and death that we deserved!

Encouragement

The redemption of Israel has occurred! The Christ has died, suffered, and redeemed his people. He has brought about a foolish nation that walks by faith (Deu 32:21; Rom 4:3; 1Cr 1:23)!

"Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,Smitten of God, and afflicted."
"But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed."
"All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him."
"He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth."
"By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation, who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?"
"His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth."
"But the LORD was pleased To crush Him,putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand."
"As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities."
"Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors." -Isa 53:4-12

To those who are barren:
""Shout for joy, O barren one, you who have borne no child; Break forth into joyful shouting and cry aloud, you who have not travailed; For the sons of the desolate one will be more numerous Than the sons of the married woman," says the LORD."
""Enlarge the place of your tent;Stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, spare not; Lengthen your cords And strengthen your pegs."
""For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left. And your descendants will possess nations And will resettle the desolate cities." -Isa 54:1-3

Make spiritual children: 1Ti 1:2; Tts 1:4; Mal 2:15

To those who are widowed:
""Fear not, for you will not be put to shame; And do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced; But you will forget the shame of your youth, And the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more."
""For your husband is your Maker, Whose name is the LORD of hosts; And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of all the earth." -Isa 54:4-5

Rejoice in the Lord!

Do I have the spirit and what does he do?

Ephesians 1:13-14 - If you KNOW the gospel, then you have him.

John 14:16-17 - Christ promised to give him to his disciples.

John 14:26 - The HS will remind us of all things.

John 16:13 - The HS will guide us in truth.

John 17:17 - Truth is God's word.

1 John 2:27 - If we have the HS, then we need no other teacher.

Job 19-20

Job 19
Job is still trying to make his point - that even if he has erred, his err is within him, and all the external things happening to him are from God. It appears to Job, that all that has happened to him is by God's very hand, that his hand is set against Job as against an enemy. He says that because of this, all of the people he once knew have nothing to do with him; even his breath is loathsome to his wife! God and his friends are not satisfied with the suffering of his flesh alone, according to Job.

Job lays into his friends with the confidence of his own salvation, for he tells them that they will be judged for their deeds against him and that Job has a redeemer!

Job20
Zophar is so agitated by these claims against him that he is moved to speak. He says that the joy of the wicked is short and that they too die just as all men. The wicked will eventually have to return all that they have taken, and his prosperity will never endure. Death will reveal to all the wicked and the righteous.

Praise the Lord that he is a redeemer; that I am given grace as salvation and that I do not have to work for that free gift! I could never measure up to God's measure of righteousness, and for his grace I am thankful!

Job 17-18

Job 17
Job is broken and ready to die. He calls all his 'friends' mockers. Judging from the phrase in verse 4, "Therefore You will not exalt," this next string of verses is Job talking to God. In verse 3 Job asks God to make a pledge to Job that, in verse 5, his mockers children would languish if his friends were somehow gaining from their friend's trial. In the next few verses, it seems that Job is again loathing his existence, but he seems to begin to see that he will be stronger through the end of these trials. He says in verse 9 that the righteous (and it seems that he considers himself righteous) will grow stronger.

In the next verse he claims again to not find a wise man among his friends. Job then contemplates making death and hell his home.

Job 18
Job's friend Bildad calls out Job and asks why is it that he is regarded as stupid? Then Bildad continues the same chorus as the rest of friends, "Job you are wicked, and here is why it is bad to be wicked, so you should turn from your ways." So clearly Bildad has gotten it yet. He still thinks that Bad things happen to bad people and good things happen to good people. What they all miss is that there is no one good, not even one. If we all got what we deserved, we would not exist. Praise the Lord for his mercy!

Some verses to consider:
John 6:45 - Christ says that the people who come to know God are taught by God.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 - An old testament prophecy that says the same.
Hebrews 8:7-12 - A new testament reiteration of both of these.
What does it mean to NOT be taught by man, but to be taught by God?

Job 15-16

Job 15
Eliphaz tells again of Job's windy talk and useless complaining. He says that by doing this Job ignores reverence and meditation before God. Job is condemn by his friend as guilty. His friend reiterates what has already been said, "Do you limit wisdom to yourself?" We find out that old men are his in this counsel (v10). Eliphaz is calling out Job, saying that Job has allowed himself to be turned from God through all of his trouble, reiterating that no man is pure and righteous before the Lord.

Eliphaz begins a story about an evil man who knows of his evil and cowers before God (his main sin against the Lord being arrogance; v25). The evil man, through this arrogance, attacks God. Eliphaz says that this man will not prosper. His livelihood will fail, and his house will be consumed with fire (seemingly acts of God, so maybe he's saying that God will pour out his wrath on this evil fellow).

Job 16
Job fires back with what seems to be a broken record or maybe the trendy thing to say during this day, "Is there no limit to windy words?" Job chides his friends for not being more understanding (understanding of what?; I would think understanding of the possibility that God may bring hardship of the righteous and the unrighteous; Matthew 5:45). Job's friends did not exactly build him up as Ephesians 4:29 says to do, and Job tells them this. He tells them that their company has shriveled him up, exhausted him, and torn him down.

It seems strange, though, still to me that Job is blaming God for all of this. Satan truly is the one who touched him though God allowed this. How about the fact that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). Job deserves death for his sin, but he has not received it. However he does desire death to this torture, as he claims this life to be; perhaps God still has plans for him.

Job does have a good understanding that man needs an advocate with the Lord. He seems to be the only one who understands this. Praise the Lord that our advocate is Jesus Christ (1 John 2:1; Hebrews 7:25). Even the spirit of God, who lives inside those who believe, makes intercession for us to the Father! (Ephesians 1:13-14; Romans 8:26).

Job 13-14

Job 13
Again, Job tells his friends that he is not inferior to them and that he would rather speak to God as if to argue his case. He calls them worthless physicians who tell lies. "Their wisdom should be there silence," he says (v5; proverbs 17:28). He asks, "Will you contend unjustly for God?" God judges the intentions of the mind and heart, and Job understands this when he asks his accusers if they would deceive God as one a man (v9; 1 Chronicles 28:9)?

Job hopes in God (v15), but his accusers don't get this. When Job asks to speak one on one with the almighty, his friends say this is not good. Job longs for a one on one relationship with God, but his accusers say that God is distant and cannot be spoken to one on one. Job acknowledges in verse 16 that a godless man may not come before God, but he is righteous and there should be allowed in his presence (v16).

Job begins his request to God saying that if he is to speak to God, God must do two things first, remove his hand from Job and when Job speaks, he must answer or he must call on Job, and Job will answer (v20-v22). Job asks God why he is bringing such turmoil upon him, a man who is like the chaff or a leaf in the wind, whose life is short and who is decaying as they speak (v25-ch14v1).

Job 14
Job continues saying that God should remove this judgment and just allow him to die as a man who is destined to die anyways (v2-v6). He goes on to say that there is hope for a tree because it can grow back after being cut down but not for man, who dies and then rests in the grave (v7-v12). Job asks God to hide him in hell from his wrath; still he says that he will wait until God returns to bring his life change (v13-v14). Job tells of how God withers man as stone and rock, destroying man's hope over time throughout his years on earth and finally overpowers him so that his sons achievements and failures are not even known to him (v16-22).

Depressing, Job, very depressing. It is not so with the believer in Christ. We have a hope in eternal salvation and a promise that we will die (Hebrews 9:27-28). Our bodies decay, but we will be given new bodies by the one who was raised from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:42-44). To all those who hear the truth of the gospel and believe will be given the Spirit, dwelling inside of there bodies as a promise for this eternal salvation (Ephesians 1:13-14). You are a temple to God because of this, so no longer say I can or can't do this or that because you have God to contend FOR you (1 Corinthians 6:19). Rather you should say, when reading God's word, "Yes. I will. This is only what I ought to do" (Luke 17:10).

Job 11-12

Job 11
Zophar, one of Job's friends answers Job's monologue from chapters nine and ten. He basically says that Job talks too much and that someone should rebuke Job for the Lord (v2-3). Zophar tells Job that he must quit hiding his sin before the Lord (but we know from chapter one that Job is not walking in sin). Zophar states that God is unfathomable that Job cannot know everything of God. He even goes as far to call Job an idiot (v12).

Zophar urges Job to put whatever sin is in him far from him. In verse 20, Zophar calls job wicked and in the previous verses he tells Job of all the good things that God would do for him if only he would depart from sin.

Job12
Job sarcastically says, "If you die, so wisdom will die with you!" He stands for what he knows saying that he also has intelligence and reiterates that he is just and righteous before God (v3-4). Job says that even the animals all around him know that God has caused this calamity to come upon him. Job tells of the power of God in all aspects of life: God can tear down and imprison; He can hold back the rain and release it at his word; All people good and bad belong to him; He humbles the wise; He allows kings freedom and he binds their hands; He reveals truth, light in the darkness; He enlarges nations and destroys them. Job says their is no light for these people.

However, we have the word of God, sharper than any two-edged sword and able to discern the intentions of the heart (Hebrews 4:12). It is the light that we are able to walk by (Psalm 119:105; 1 John 1:6-7); and we do grope for it, though it is quite near (Acts 17:27).

Job 9-10

Job 9
Job concedes that Bildad is right in saying that God will come to his defense still, but Job seems to backslide in his own mind and asks some questions that just really don't have any solid answers (at least in this time. At the first revelation of Christ, he is able to answer these questions):

"How can a man be in the right before God?"

"Who could argue their point against him?"

"Who could stand against his strength and power?"

Job tells us of God's might, his strength to move mountains, his ability to give and take away the light of the stars, to remove the ocean's waves, to use the most dreaded creatures on earth (Rahab, a monster of the sea). Job gets it! He understands who he is and who God is: "For though I were right, I could not answer; I would have to implore the mercy of my judge" (v15). To believe the truth about Christ, we have to know this, that God is everything and we are nothing. We require Christ! Without Christ we cannot stand before God. His mercy must be shown or else we perish before his judgment!

Job reminds us that God controls the weather (v17), and for Job, God has allowed Satan to inflict disaster upon him. Job continues to describe that though he is righteous, his righteousness does not stand up to God's, and though he is guiltless, he is guilty before God.

Job declares I am guiltless, yet I am bruised by God. In verse 24, he asks, "If not God, then who?"

It seems that Job comes to a realization that his life is short and that he does not want to spend it in anger (v25-27). Through v31, Job understands that he could do all sorts of physical things to cleanse himself, but God would still declare him guilty. In verse 33, he realizes that their is no arbitrator between him and God, no one to see both sides and plead both sides' cases to the opposing side (Praise the Lord that we do have such an arbitrator! namely Jesus Christ [Heb 4:14]).

Job 10
Job is bitter against his life, and he will speak plainly through his bitterness. He calls to God, backwardly telling God that he is wrong in rejecting the work of his hands (v3). Job says that this is what a mortal man would do, seek out for sin in Job, but God is neither mortal nor is blinded from Jobs actions (he knows all about Job, that he is a righteous man).

In verses 8-12, Job describes how God has created him, vividly. He tells God that his lovingkindness is there but to Job it is hidden within God. Job does no longer see this kindness, but he sees the anger that is unjustly burning against him (v17).

Out of the womb, Job has been created, and if for nothing else, I think Job is saying, he has been brought out for some purpose; for why would he not have been killed immediately at birth since that is what he desires now.

Seek God and contend with him to keep his promises, written in his word!

Job 7-8

Job 7
Job makes a a claim that lines right up with is understanding of life as it is: vane. He says, "Are not man's days as a hired man who eagerly waits for his wages?" (v2). He is given days of vanity and nights of trouble (v3). In verse 5, Job gives some gruesome details about his sickness and says, in verse 7, that he is doomed to die without hope.

Job begins considering his life and death in the next section. He is in a place such as the writer of Ecclesiastes describes, "better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, because that is the end of every man, and the living take it to heart" (Ecc 7:2). He is mourning! He is speaking his real emotions; he's not hiding from anyone, especially God. He's real with his friends, chastising them for considering Job's bed and couch a comfort (v13). Job knows that these material things will not truly comfort his soul. He would choose death, his only comfort for that period of his life. (Aside: so why doesn't Job kill himself like so many choose as an out? He knows that life is vain; he knows that life is futile and very painful for him specifically at the moment, but he knows that life is God's to give and to take, not his.)

"What have I done to you oh watcher of men?" Job is seriously opening up one on one with God. "Why do you not pardon my transgression?" Job knows God pardons transgressions.

Job 8
"If you would seek God..." Oh how we do not seek God today!

Bildad tries to get Job to seek out past generations and their counsel (v8). "Will they not teach you and tell you, and bring forth words from their minds?"

Bildad then encourages Job to endure, comparing him to a plant that grows the quickest, cannot deny the soil from which it came, yet withers the quickest of any plant. He says not to forget the Lord in your time of despair! (v11-13). He says some really good things for us to remember about our trust in God:

"Don't let your confidence in God be fragile like a spider web!"

"Don't trust in your house for it will not stand!"

"Don't spread your roots over rocky soil and be pulled so easily!" *

Bildad also says that God will not reject a man of integrity (which could also be translated as blameless or complete), but it seems to me that the Lord has not so far in the story come to the defense of such a man, which is the picture we get of Job in the first chapter. Bildad says in the last two verses that God will come to your defense yet and that he has not forgotten his servant Job.

* This quote reminds me of the parable of the seeds that Christ uses to explain how the word of God is spread among people. The seed sown on the rocky soil has a big problem in that that type of person never truly believes God's word because they fall away under persecution. (read Luke 8)

Job 3-6

Job 3
With Job's friends gathered around, Job curses the day of his birth. He curses everything about the day and night of his birth, the miracle of him even surviving birth, and his mother's body for giving him life.

He asks, "Why is light given to him who suffers, and life to the bitter of soul?" (v20); and if you haven't gotten by now, the chapter is finished by Job stating that he is not at ease (well, duh, we can see that by your lament).

Job 4
So Eliphaz takes a shot at answering Job. Apparently Job has been impatient according to Eliphaz's opening line, but Eliphaz does go about talking to Job in a gentle way at first. He builds him up, recounting Job his accomplishments. Eliphaz says, "it [God's Hand] touches you, and you become impatient" (v5).

Well, Eliphaz, I would have to say it more than touched him. At the very least you would have to concede that it in fact touched his whole family; but you do make a good point that those who sow trouble, harvest it, and you rightly ask, "Can mankind be just before God?" (v8 & v17).

Basically, Eliphaz is saying, 'Job, there may be some sin in your life that is causing this.'

Job 5
Eliphaz encourages Job to 'seek God.' He says to be of this mind: "Happy is the man whom God reproves, so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty" (v17). He finishes his speech by encouraging Job to trust in God and God will stand for him. Again, Eliphaz thinks Job has sinned against the Lord.

Job 6
Job is still stuck on desiring death from God. He believes God is tormenting him, saying, "The Almighty's [poisonous] arrows are within me," but he desires death not the torment of the arrows. He then calls out Eliphaz for blaming him for sinning, asking Eliphaz to show him where he is wrong.

It's hard to tell so far if Job is really in tuned with his sin, in the fact that he has not sin, or if he is prideful in not wanting to admit that he may have sin in his life. Either way, it is apparent that he is taking a stand on the fact that this plague on him is not for sin in his life, but it is God who is afflicting him. Bold, Job; very bold.

Job 1-2

Job 1
Here's Job: blameless before God, rich beyond measure, a huge family, children who love and take care of each other. Job would make burnt offerings for the sins of his sons that they may have committed (super pious). He knew that his sons could sin in their hearts without his knowledge, so he made remittance for even that possibility.

The Lord has a meeting with his sons and Satan (weird combo I think). Satan asks for God's permission to test Job and see if he will curse God. God gives him permission.

Job's herds are destroyed and his children are killed in an act of God. Job's response: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD."

Job 2
The Lord has another meeting of his sons and Satan; and still Satan is not impressed. In fact it seems now that Satan is just desiring destruction, but I am not God, so it is hard for me to determine others' intentions. Satan asks to test Job again. God agrees.

Job is covered in boils head to toe. His wife chimes in, "Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!" Job responds, "Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?"

His friends gather around Job and mourn with him.

Praise God that Satan has to ask of him in order to work! That means God is in control no matter the situation. Also note that God throws Satan in the lake of Fire at the end of time in Revelation 20:10.

To the one who says God does not allow bad things to happen to good people, I submit 2 thoughts: (1) Job; (2) Romans 3:10-11, Genesis 8:21, & Jeremiah 17:9.

Esther 8-10

Est 8
Mordecai is given the king's signet ring and put over the house of Haman. Esther then begs the king for a lettering reversing Haman's letter, declaring the an assault on the Jews. The king tells Esther to write the letter in the king's name and sign it with the king's ring.

So the king brought out the scribes and they took down Mordecai's dictation in every language in the kingdom (which was a lot considering that the kingdom spread from India to Africa). The king's edict gave Jews the permission to rise up against any army that may attack them. Mordecai then left with honor from the king and all the Jews in Susa celebrated this great turn of events.

Est 9
In a turn of events, on the day the Jews were to be executed, and by the king's authority, Jews gathered in the city squares to harm any one who would stand against them. In Susa alone Jews killed 500 men.

After this report came to the king, the king asked Esther what else she would have him do. She asked for a second day of vengeance on Israel's enemies and also for Haman's ten sons to be hanged. I don't know if this was the Lord's vengeance or Esther's greed, but I do know this:

"Rejoice, O nations, with His people; For He will avenge the blood of His servants, And will render vengeance on His adversaries, And will atone for His land and His people" (Deu 32:43).

&

"O LORD, God of vengeance, God of vengeance, shine forth! Rise up, O Judge of the earth, Render recompense to the proud. How long shall the wicked, O LORD, How long shall the wicked exult? They pour forth words, they speak arrogantly; All who do wickedness vaunt themselves" (Psa 94:1-4).

Overall the Jews killed over 75,000 people. Mordecai wrote to his people that they should rejoice for they had rid themselves of their enemies. Mordecai and Esther established that day a day of celebration and called it Purim, which is still celebrated in Jewish circles today.

Est 10
Mordecai was second to only the king from here on out.

Esther 5 -7

Est 5
So Esther goes before the King in her Royal Robes; the queen finds favor in the King's sight (Praise the Lord!) and is asked for her request. For some reason or another, Esther requests the king's attendance at a banquet she is hosting. When the king is full, Esther then requests for him to come to another banquet the next day. This is a strange set of circumstances, and I urge you that if you do read anything into why Esther was doing this, not to preach on it or to teach others, because as far as I can tell, there is no light on why she did this in the scriptures. We can all definitely agree that Esther took some time in getting it out that she wanted the king to protect her people from Haman.

Now between the first banquet and the second banquet, the writer of Esther tells of a few events that happened the next day:

Haman left the temple for home and noticed Mordecai's defiance of his command for all to bow to him, but he "controlled" himself and kept on his journey. At home, Haman brags to his friends and wife about all the respect he has earned in the King's court, but he confesses that this success does not satisfy him when he compares it against Mordecai's indignation. His wife and friends advise Haman to hang Mordecai, and Haman puts into motion his plan to do so.

Est 6
So the first line of this chapter is hilarious: "During that night the king could not sleep so he gave an order to bring the book of records, the chronicles, and they were read before the king." Maybe it's just me, but that's funny.

The king is reminded in his hearing that Mordecai saved his life and asks if any dignity had been given Mordecai. Finding none, the king asks Haman, who just walked in, his opinion on honoring someone for serving the king. Haman, being the prideful man that has been described thus far in this book, thinks the king is speaking of him and lays out an elaborate parading of the individual being honored. The king thinks Haman's idea to be good and tells Haman to do it for Mordecai (which you can imagine that Haman is furious).

So Haman is the one to parade Mordecai around the king's court, and when finished, he runs home, crying, to his wife and friends (this is not a man that I will hold up as a good example to my children). Haman then leaves for the banquet, which Esther prepared (the second).

Est 7
After the king drank, he asked Esther what she wanted; she then outed Haman's plot against her family, which enraged the king! Before the words even left the king's mouth, Haman was hanged on the very gallows he planned to hang Mordecai on.

Some good verses to consider:

"The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverted mouth, I hate" (proverbs 8:13)

"When pride comes, then comes dishonor, But with the humble is wisdom" (proverbs 11:2).

"A man's pride will bring him low, But a humble spirit will obtain honor" (proverbs 29:23).

Haman's pride and arrogance were his destruction.

"LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD" (Jeremiah 9:23-24; 1 Corinthians 1:31; 2 Corinthians 10:17)

Esther 3 & 4

Est 3
King Ahasuerus promotes Haman and now requires that the princes of the province and all people should pay homage to Haman, bowing down before him. Mordecai does not do this, saying that he will bow to no other than God, so Haman throws a hissy fit and seeks to destroy all the Jews in the region.

I sometimes want people to bow to me also, but not in such a physical way; but when I do something good for someone else, I want them to thank me and I think I deserve thanks, but that is a lie from the devil. Christ says that once we are done doing the work of the Lord, we should look at ourselves and say "we are unworthy slaves, we have only done what we ought to have done" (Luke 17:10). If you look a few verses ahead of that to verse 5, you'll see that Christ is expounding upon 'increasing [the disciples] faith.' If the we all just got that, we would see that walking by faith is merely doing what the Lord has told us to do. That's huge!

So Haman convinces the king to decree that all Jews are to be destroyed and is able to use the king's funds to do so. He sends out the decree to all the provinces that tells the princes of each to kill and destroy all the Jews. This dude was worse than Hitler.

Est 4
The Jews mourned this decree with loud wailing and fasting, dressed in sackcloth and on ashes. It strikes me that their inner turmoil caused by an outer event is so visibly strong in how they act. If our belief in God were as such, then as James 2:14-26 expounds, our lives would be filled with outer expressions of our inner belief!

Esther gets wind of this edict and mourns as well. She finds out from Mordecai how and why this happened and is urged by Mordecai to go before the King and plead the Jews case. Esther did not like this idea, because it could possibly mean her execution (if you were not summoned by the king and you came before his presence, their was a strong likelyhood that he would have you killed). Then Mordecai writes back some encouraging words and perhaps the most famous words from this book, "And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this" (v14)? Esther, persuaded to go before the king, tells Mordecai that her life is of little consequence compared to his great request.

Praise the Lord for the faith that Mordecai shows and the willingness to submit that Esther presents! These are two great examples of people who loved the Lord.

Esther 1 & 2

Est 1
The story of Esther begins with the story of King Ahasuerus. King Ahasuerus was a man of great wealth, and rightly so judging from the size of his kingdom. Alexander the Great's kingdom was the same size (though Alexander died in his final conquests) and he is supposedly the most famous person next to Jesus the world over. King Ahasuerus through a large festival type of party and on the third day, when he was 'merry with wine' asked for his prized bride to present herself before all of the princes gathered to show her beauty. In one of the earliest acts of feminism (but not the earliest mine you), Queen Vashti his wife would not present herself before the king and princes.

Due to this single act of disobedience, the king's eunuchs convinced the king to sign an edict, removing Queen Vashti from her royal place, saying that if all the women in this province started mimicking Queen Vashti's actions, the princes of the provinces would be put out. The king signed the edict.

Est 2
The first verse of this chapter says that 'the king's anger subsided and he remembered Vashti.' I think this means he longed for her, wanted her back perhaps because the next thing written is about the eunuchs searching for a wife for the King (I think to fill the void that the king felt).

The story of Esther enters into the second paragraph of this chapter. We learn that Mordecai is raising her because of the absence of her mother and father and that she is beautiful.

Esther is summoned with all the women of the province to a harem where they will undergo a year of cosmetics and beautification and then will see the king in the early hours of the day to find out if they will become his concubine or the Queen (v14).

After all of this took place, Esther was chosen as Queen, and with Mordecai's help, one of her first acts as queen was to stop a plot to kill the king. The king chronicled this act by Esther and Mordecai.

Practical advice thus far: Love your wives. They will be disobedient but remember, you also once were foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending your life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life (Titus 3:3-7).

Nehemiah 13

Neh 13
While reading aloud the book of the Law, Israel came across a passage in Deuteronomy, 23:3. They heard in the reading that no Ammonite was to be among their assembly. This is a good example where someone heard God's word and then 'did' God's word (But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves - James 1:22). So Israel sent away the foriegners among the assembly.

Eliashib the priest made a room for his relative, Tobiah, in the temple. Nehemiah was absent from Jerusalem at this time, and it seems that there was no one to stop Eliashib from doing this. Nehemiah returned and threw Tobiah out.

Also, when Nehemiah returned, he found that the Levites and singers had not been given the tithes required of Israel and left for their fields to make a living. Nehemiah restored them to their places in the temple and then calls on the Lord to remember his deeds and good works. At this point, Israel does not have a savior for sin and must count on their good deeds to get them to heaven. Thank the Lord that Christ died for our sins so that we could be reconciled to God without being required to perform good works (Colossians 1:22 & Ephesians 2:9).

Nehemiah goes on to call out all kinds of sin on the Israelites, like working on the sabbath and marriage to foreign women. Nehemiah could have said the same as the psalmists in Psalm 119:60-61 for himself that he did not delay of forget the law of the Lord.

Nehemiah 11 & 12

Neh 11
In the first few verses, we find out that the leaders of Israel lived in Jerusalem, and then Israel drew lots to get other people in the city. I am struck that it is not something that everyman desires to live in Jerusalem (of course it has not gained it's significance that it has today), but still it seems to be a holy and important city. I think that the Israelites valued their homes and families over a city and this is why, but that is just a thought. The rest of Israel lived throughout Judah in their inheritance (v20).

There were song leaders and singer appointed to the house of God. Song is important, judging from it's prevalence in scripture and Paul's encouragement in Colossians 3:16 to admonish one another with these songs.

Neh 12
This first part of this chapter is a list of priests who returned and, the next, a list of the heads of the Levites.

The Israelites dedicated the newly built wall in a large ceremony with singing. There is a very specific description of this ceremony, of where people stood and who was involved.

Israel gave portions to the singers.

I'm not sure about all this and what it means, but I do understand this verse in James 3:1 that says teachers will incur a stricter judgment; and if I think about Mark 9:42 and the seriousness of what is taught, I am not quick to expound on these verses unless the spirit gives me light. I pray that you would as well consider the serious judgment that awaits those who teach.

Neh 9 & 10

Reminder: this is NOT a commentary. It is a journal in which others can find encouragement. Be a Berean (Acts 17:11)!

Neh 9
Israel assembled, fasting with sackcloth, and they CONFESSED the sins of their fathers! Why must they confess the sins of their fathers? I don't really know, but I am reminded of this passage in Deuteronomy: "You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me" (5:9). Perhaps, in the reading of the law, the Israelites saw this verse and took it to heart.

Eight Levites then began to recount the history of Israel in verse. It is a great summary of what has happened to the people of Israel to this point. God chose Abram; He heard their cry in Egypt; God gave his ordinance at Mount Sinai; He provided for Israel in wilderness; Even after Israel turned to idols, God did not forget them; God multiplied the people in a new land of inheritance; He did not forget them even in Babylon. Now the Israelites have given their covenant to the Lord to keep his statutes.

Neh 10
We have a list of signers of this covenant. The first point made after this list is that These people have taken on a curse or in hebrew, ''alah ' (v29). This word could also mean oath, but if you cross-reference it with the 21st verse in Numbers 5, you can see that there is a distinction made between oath and curse (the word for curse being ''alah ' and the word for oath being 'shĕbuw`ah'). I remember Galations 3:13, that the law is a curse because we cannot keep it. That is why Christ had to die for us!, to save us from the curse! (Remember also Paul's exhortation in Romans 7).

The Israelites also made a covenant to a certain amount of offerings and tithes. They also promised to provide wood for sacrifices in turn.

Nehemiah 5,6,7 & 8

Neh 5
Ok... so 3 categories: [1] those who did not have enough to fulfill their needs, [2] those who, also did not have enough to fulfill their needs, but borrowed money to do so, [3] and those who borrowed money to pay the king's tax. In verse 5, I think Nehemiah's talking about other Jewish brothers when he says 'others.' I get that also from the fact that Nehemiah condemns the Jews for usury, or the adding of interest to borrowed money. Nehemiah called it for what it was, Jews selling Jews and every man who heard was condemned and became quiet (v8).

Thank the Lord that they all repented after hearing this from Nehemiah. They gave back to those who were in debt what they had previously owned and promised not to commit this sin again. A lesson for us all for sure, but Christ calls us even higher than this. He says "to give to whoever asks" (Luke 6:30). The early church understood this, giving all they had and making sure no one in the church is in need. How could I celebrate a new TV or car and my brother be in debt? How could I enjoy lavish dinners and new clothes and my brother have trouble providing for his family? To him who is given much, much will be required: I have been given the greatest gift of all, eternity with the God of heaven (Ephesians 2:1-9); how could I not freely give (Matthew 10:8).

Nehemiah understood this, giving over 150 Jews and officials food everyday (v17). In fact he set a bold example by not requiring the government's rations, but Nehemiah trusted in God to provide for him (yes I know it sounds crazy, but sometimes the bible's like that).

Neh 6
Israel's enemies were not excited, as you could imagine, about the completion of the wall at Jerusalem. They accused Israel of rebellion, but Nehemiah denied it and prayed to God that he would strengthen his hands (v9). Nehemiah's enemies even threatened to come kill him, but it did not deter Nehemiah nor the work on the wall. When the wall was completed, all of their enemies confessed that God was at work in the Jews and in Nehemiah.

Neh 7
Nehemiah placed a faithful and God-fearing man in charge of protecting Jerusalem. He then assembled many people to find out their place in the book of genealogy.

Neh 8
All the people gathered at the water gate to hear Ezra read the Law. Men and women and all who could understand were there. Two things stand out to me in this beginning paragraph: (1) they worshiped God face down, kneeling (v6), and (2) Ezra translated the word into plain words so that the people could understand (v8). I believe the true worship of God can only be face down when we realize who he is, a just, good, and faithful God, and who we are, sinners, filthy, and undeserving of the grace of Life. Isaiah knew this when given a vision of the Lord (Isaiah 6:5).

When the law was read, every man was condemned and they were weeping over their sin. Ezra and Nehemiah told them to celebrate with feasting. They then celebrated the festival of booths and read from the book of the law everyday.

Lord, I pray that you would help help me to meditate on your word all of the day.

Nehemiah 3 & 4

Neh 3
There is a lot of construction in this chapter, something I deal with every day. Many gates were constructed and before they were constructed, they were consecrated. There was one group that 'zealously' repaired the gate and section they were working on (v20). All this attention to detail in fortifying Jerusalem makes me consider how I have fortified my heart from outside attack. I am admonished by 1 Corinthians 10:12 to "take heed that I do not fall," to protect myself from temptation. The Psalmist in Chapter 119:11 reminds me that one way of doing this is to store up God's word in my heart. Also Ephesians 6:16 says to take up the shield of faith, which I see, from Romans 10:17, comes from hearing the words of Christ. Also this to say that the need for the fortification of a city, in the time of Nehemiah is apparent. The need to fortify my heart is not so readily seen. We should all remember what Solomon says about this: "He who rules his spirit [is better] than he who captures a city" (Proverbs 16:32).

Neh 4
This scene begins with insults from Israel's enemies. They are making fun of Jerusalem's wall! But Nehemiah prays to God and praises the remnant for the amount of work they have done in so little of a time. The enemies of Israel insulted Jerusalem so much that many of the remnant were worried about attack. Nehemiah encouraged them to consider the greatness of God and his awesome power (v14). We should all remember this when our worries arise (Matthew 6:25-34).

The Israelites were so tuff that they worked with one hand and stood guard with the other hand (v17). They never removed their weapon throughout all of the construction they were doing (v23).

I pray that the Lord's peace would rest on all of you, that we would all better understand what the word says in Matthew 6, that worry is never an option, but that God is in control. I pray also that we would all work as hard as the Israelites in the Lord's service. Praise the Lord who created the earth and moon, stars and sky, the Lord who breathed life into Adam and knits us together in our mother's wombs. He has so graciously given us life and breath and everything else though we deserve death for our sin!